So, some good news...

If you also read my sister's blog, than you know that while we were in MI for our grandfather's funeral, our other grandfather (my dad's dad) had a tumor removed from his neck and it was malignant. They had to do some tests and he met with his oncologist and surgeon this past Friday. We were all on pins and needles because he had already decided that he would not go through any harsh treatment (chemo or radiation) - which is not surprising because his wife, our Grandma Trudy, was completely debilitated by treatment for her cancer a few years back...it was horrible and she suffered for years after the treatments before she passed away.

Fast forward - my grandfather found out that he does have the same type of cancer as my grandmother did, but the oncologist said they pretty much could not have caught it sooner. They anticipated one six-week round of chemo (well, he said they told him he would be sick for six weeks) and they said with that treatment there's a 98% chance of remission. Praise God! He already consented to this treatment (another praise God!) and is ready to get it behind him. I do not even want to think about the pleading and prodding we would have had to do in order to have him consent to treatment if the results of these initial tests were not so positive.

I know that cancer touches a lot of families - in our family it has touched a lot of lives...my mom's dad, my Great-Grandma Huse, my Grandma Margaret, my Grandma Trudy and now my Grandpa. My dad had a spot of skin cancer (basal cell carcinoma - the most common type) removed several years ago. Not all have been terminal illnesses, but still, that's all four of my grandparents.

So, let's all check our skin regularly, stay on top of any health concerns, and visit the doctor regularly. I hate cancer.

The visitation, funeral and impromptu family reunion all went well. It was great to be able to all spend time together and we felt blessed to be there to support my grandmother, who is doing amazingly well and starting to plan for the rest of her life, knowing that she still has living left to do. She told us lots of stories over the last few days and I think she really enjoyed passing on bits of history to her grandkids. I know we all sat at rapt attention - she's led what she considers a very normal life, but it was so interesting to us...we'd like to hear more someday. Hopefully she'll be doing some traveling to visit family, and she'll be able to start going to church again, which she is really looking forward to - the last few years my grandfather has not been mobile enough to get to church, so the pastors have been doing home visits. My grandmother is ready to attend services again and visit with old friends each Sunday. The ladies of the church held a very nice reception for us in the Fellowship Hall after the funeral. It brought back a lot of memories for my sister and I as it was the church we attended as kids. Overall it was a wonderful trip - I would have liked to have had another reason for all of us to get together, but when we do get together it's always a good time.

So I went from rain in Michigan to rain in Washington, but at least I'm home sleeping in my own bed (not air mattress) and back with my husband just in time for our first anniversary tomorrow. Due to weather delays I got home after midnight yesterday, and because I flew into Portland, we didn't get home until almost 3 a.m. We were having our "man room" furniture delivered yesterday morning, so we had to be up by 9 in order to let them! Will had to go to work after that and I had to run errands...Needless to say, we were both exhausted all day.

Today we'll do a little shopping for some more "man room" items (end tables, and something to put the TV on, and throw pillows - my idea, of course, to which Will asked, "Why?"). We'll have dinner out tonight to celebrate our anniversary at a local restaurant we've been wanting to try - it's right on the water (which would be great for sunset, but it's cloudy today) and it supposed to be gorgeous inside as they brought in materials from all over the world to furnish and decorate the space. We'll see! Off to get the day started...

Impromptu Family Reunion...for a funeral.

If you read my sister's blog you've already heard that our grandfather (on our mother's side) passed away yesterday. He was 93 and lived a long, full, interesting life - some credits to his name are...

-being an orphan and deciding what he would like his own last name to be (as a 9 or 10 year old kid)
-playing minor league baseball for a Cubs farm team
-marrying my grandmother (Lucky man! They were both widowed; they met and married a few years after my parents did.)
-being featured in Sports Illustrated magazine as an outstanding senior bowler
-playing golf well into his 90's
-completing the newspaper crossword puzzle every single day
-and, well, living to 93!!!


So, folks, if there is thunder in your area today, just know my Grandpa has already hit the lanes in heaven...if there's hail, than know his golf game is rusty because it's been a while since he's had the chance to hit the links (normally he's very accurate).

In the morning I'll head out to Michigan for the visitation and funeral. I just found out this morning that all of my siblings, their spouses and my nieces will be able to attend as well. Poor Will has to work and will hold down the fort (base?) here in WA. As somber a time as it is, I envision a few days of celebrating a long life well-lived, spending time with family (time we thought we'd miss out on this summer), and spending time with our Grandma Margaret, who is an amazing woman of faith who we all cherish. Please keep her in your prayer as she goes through this transition.

***UPDATE*** - It officially reached 99 degrees, smashing the decades-old record of 94. Inside the house it reached, and stayed at, 88 degrees. Inside. The. House. All day long. While Will worked in and air-conditioned office. Ugh. We decided to eat dinner out. I sat in a chair that was placed directly over an a/c vent. I was cold, and it was delicious. This morning it is very cool, overcast, and I am happy. The pups are happy, too.

Currently At 6:00PM

98°F

RealFeel® 98°F

Winds: N at 7mph

Mostly Sunny
Humidity: 20%
Visibility: 10 Miles

Um, where is it that we live?

What we've been up to while we've been having wonderful weather...

Attempting to take a family picture...

Wake boarding (Will, not me...I fell down, thrice).

Modeling Will's ultra-cool issued sunglasses.

Just floating; however, I did tube a few times!

Tubing Will's way - Don't spill the beer!

Where we eat dinner every night. This patio furniture was one of our best first-time home-buyer purchases.

One more attempt at a family picture - Dixie did not cooperate as well as the rest of us and turned her head at the last minute. You know it was a pretty sorry photo session if this is the best shot we got!!!

Planter box finished by my amazing husband who didn't even want it in the first place. I said it could be my anniversary present because it really did mean that much to me that he built it anyway! I planted two tomato plants, lemon cucumbers, strawberries, jalapenos and serranos, basil, mint and parsley. Now we'll see how it all does!

So far the summer here has DEFINITELY made up for most of the horrible winter weather (in my humble opinion). It has been gorgeous, hovering just around the mid-80's so that we can survive just fine with no a/c. It has gotten up to 90 and is supposed to again this week, but then we'll have a beautiful 75 to 80 degree day following the heat and all is right with the world. We're so thankful to have friends with a boat! Oh, and those same friends have a/c, so if it gets brutal we can go across the street for a visit! We lead a blessed life, for sure.

Happy Independence Day a day late! We had a BLAST at a friend's house in Tacoma, where this picture was taken (on his back deck). The house had a perfect view of the air show and fireworks which were both over the Sound. There was a fair down on the shore and we had the best roasted corn on the cob (well, best next to what Will makes on the grill!!). We spent the day up there wandering around, people watching, and enjoying the festivities. When you think of Tacoma you don't usually thing "gorgeous view," but this was amazing! One of the great things about it was that we could also see the Seattle fireworks in the distance.

Today we spent the day on the lake with our good friends and had a great time tubing, wake boarding, swimming and just chillin' on the water...but those pictures will have to wait because we are tired, sunburned and ready for dinner!!! Hope you all were able to enjoy the holiday even though it fell in the middle of the week this year!